


Tradition

by dafna



Category: The Sentinel
Genre: Collection: Purimgifts Day 2, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-03-17
Updated: 2011-03-17
Packaged: 2017-10-17 03:30:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/172444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dafna/pseuds/dafna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Blair wears a stuffed parrot and Jim gets him to shut up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tradition

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gblvr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gblvr/gifts).



It's not like Jim invited the kid to stay with any predatory intent or anything, but hello, he wasn't blind. And in the first few weeks he'd seen the kid give him a few looks, so he didn't think he was out of line in thinking that this Sentinel-Guide stuff might eventually lead to something more extracurricular.

And sure, the arm over the couch was a bit of a cliché, but he didn't really think it merited Sandburg giving him an odd look and scooting not-at-all subtly out of reach.

But the next day, in the middle of a discussion of Richard Burton (again), Sandburg suddenly started talking about the tradition of putting distance between researcher and subject and the importance of professional behavior.

Jim gritted his teeth. Fine, message received.

Which left him completely unprepared a few months later when Blair waltzed in smelling of cheap alcohol and expensive perfume, leaned down to where Jim was sitting on the couch, grabbed at the front of his shirt and kissed him.

Or tried to, anyway. Jim felt a brief damp impression somewhere near his nose and then the kid overbalanced and he suddenly found himself with a lap full of crazy anthropologist.

"Sandburg, what the hell?"

Blair ignored him in favor of wrapping his legs more firmly around Jim's waist and leaning in to kiss him again. Jim tried to ignore the thrill running down his spine and put both hands around Blair's face to hold him in place, noticing for the first time that he was wearing an eye patch and had a stuffed parrot listing badly off his right shoulder.

Right, Jim thought, trying not to be too disappointed. Clearly he was just drunk.

Blair laughed softly. "It's OK, Jim, I know what I'm doing. Honest, smell my breath."

Jim dialed up the senses he always tried to keep low around Blair (doing otherwise tended to make him zone or get hard, and neither was conducive to getting shit done) and huh, Sandburg was telling the truth. That was "had a beer or two an hour ago" breath, not "spiked the punch and then fell into it."

Blair moved one hand to cup Jim's face, and leaned in again. Jim swallowed hard but gave a slight nod to indicate, right, OK, fine, sure, I'm cool.

Blair's lips were slightly chapped, but warm. His tongue parted Jim's lips, not hesitant but not aggressive either. Slow and steady, as if Jim's mouth were an ancient site to be mapped and labeled. Jim shuddered with the effort not to zone on the ridges of Blair's tongue. He dropped one hand from Blair's head down to his waist, twisting the shirt to lift it out of his pants. Skin. He needed to get to skin.

But Blair was already pulling back, his hair brushing against Jim's face as he shook his head slightly. "Whoa, OK. That was. Um. Yeah."

Jim used both hands now to keep Blair firmly planted on top of him. Sandburg was definitely hard, so why was he stopping? Why pull back now?

Blair blushed. "Uh, so, Jim, sorry. That went a bit further than I ... See, there's this Jewish holiday where you dress up and drink and it's kind of traditional to like, behave in ways you don't the rest of the year -- and I just thought. Well, I don't know, I guess I thought that maybe just once we could --"

A wave of relief swept over Jim, followed by the realization that any minute now, Blair was going to talk himself out of continuing. He stood up halfway, lifting Blair with him, then tumbled them both down on the couch again, but this time lengthwise. He began unbuttoning Blair's shirt.

Blair was still talking. "I mean it's a biblical holiday, of course, but scholars think a lot of the modern day customs were adapted from the Christian carnival celebrations in the middle ---"

Jim found what he was looking for and began nibbling on Blair's right nipple.

Blair shut up.

***************

**Author's Note:**

> Photo is one I took in Vancouver several years ago, and since Vancouver played the part of "Cascade" in the show, thought it would go well.


End file.
